G3925 — παρεμβολή (parembolē)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: G3925
Original: παρεμβολή
Transliteration: parembolē
Pronunciation: par-em-bol-ay'
Part of Speech: Feminine noun
Root: Compound of παρά (G3844, "beside") + ἐμβάλλω (G1685, "to throw in") — literally "a throwing in beside," i.e., an insertion or interpolation of troops; hence a camp or barracks
Occurrences: 10 unique verses in NT (10 tokens)
First Occurrence: Acts 21:34 — "he commanded him to be carried into the castle"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From a compound of παρά (G3844) and ἐμβάλλω (G1685); a throwing in beside — i.e., (specifically) battle array, encampment, or (generally) barracks (tower Antonia).

Louw-Nida Semantic Domain¶

Domain 7: Constructions
Subdomain 7.2: Buildings — barracks, fortified quarters
Domain 1: Geographical Objects and Features
Subdomain 1.14: Population Centers — camp as settlement

Domain Neighbors (7.2 — Buildings)¶

Strong's	Lemma	Total Verses	Primary KJV Translation(s)
G40	ἅγιος	136	saints, holy
G201	ἀκροατήριον	1	place of hearing
G596	ἀποθήκη	6	barn, barns
G833	αὐλή	10	palace, hall
G1201	δεσμωτήριον	4	prison
G1493	εἰδωλεῖον	1	the idol's temple
G1886	ἔπαυλις	1	habitation
G2646	κατάλυμα	3	guestchamber, inn
G3485	ναός	40	temple
G3614	οἰκία	82	house

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Count	%
castle	6	60%
camp	3	30%
armies	1	10%

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Acts	6	0.6
Hebrews	3	1.0
Revelation	1	0.2

Concentrated in two contexts: Paul's custody narrative (Acts 21–23) and the OT-typological camp imagery (Hebrews, Revelation). Hebrews has the highest density despite fewer raw occurrences. Absent from the Gospels, Pauline epistles, and all other NT books.

Morphological Distribution¶

Case	Count	Notes
Accusative singular	8	Motion toward: "into the castle/camp"
Genitive singular	2	Separation: "without the camp" (Heb 13:11, 13)
Accusative plural	1	Collective: "armies of the aliens" (Heb 11:34)

The accusative singular dominates, reflecting directional usage ("carried into," "led into," "entered into"). The genitive singular in Hebrews carries the theologically loaded phrase ἔξω τῆς παρεμβολῆς ("outside the camp").

Semantic Categories¶

1. Roman Military Barracks / Fortress¶

Acts 21:34 — "he commanded him to be carried into the castle" — the Antonia Fortress adjacent to the Jerusalem temple
Acts 21:37 — "as Paul was to be led into the castle, he said unto the chief captain, May I speak unto thee?"
Acts 22:24 — "The chief captain commanded him to be brought into the castle, and bade that he should be examined by scourging"
Acts 23:10 — "commanded the soldiers to go down, and to take him by force from among them, and to bring him into the castle"

2. Place of Military Custody / Refuge¶

Acts 23:16 — "Paul's sister's son... went and entered into the castle, and told Paul"
Acts 23:32 — "On the morrow they left the horsemen to go with him, and returned to the castle"

3. Sacral Camp (OT Typology — "Outside the Camp")¶

Hebrews 13:11 — "the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp"
Hebrews 13:13 — "Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach"

4. Encamped Army / Battle Array¶

Hebrews 11:34 — "turned to flight the armies of the aliens" — military camps in battle formation
Revelation 20:9 — "compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city" — the encampment of God's people as a besieged location

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
ἄγω (agō)	G71	3x (30%)	"led/carried into the castle" — Paul brought under guard
κελεύω (keleuō)	G2753	3x (30%)	"commanded him to be brought into the castle" — military orders
Παῦλος (Paulos)	G3972	3x (30%)	Paul as the person taken to/held in the barracks
χιλίαρχος (chiliarchos)	G5506	3x (30%)	"chief captain" — Roman tribune commanding the garrison
ἔξω (exō)	G1854	2x (20%)	"without the camp" — the Hebrews typological formula
πῦρ (pyr)	G4442	2x (20%)	Fire in relation to camp — burned outside camp (Heb 13:11), fire from heaven (Rev 20:9)
καταβαίνω (katabainō)	G2597	2x (20%)	Soldiers going down from the fortress into the crowd

Antonyms¶

ἀγρός (agros) G68 — open field, countryside (36v) — unenclosed territory vs. the enclosed, fortified camp
ὀχύρωμα (ochyrōma) G3794 — stronghold, fortress (1v, 2 Cor 10:4) — fortification in the abstract/metaphorical sense vs. parembole's concrete military installation

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
חָנָה (chanah)	H2583	"camp" (KJV)	chanah is the Hebrew verb "to encamp/pitch camp"; parembole is the Greek noun for the camp itself

Semantic Domain Neighbors¶

αὐλή (aulē) G833 — courtyard, palace (10v) — an enclosed area, but civilian rather than military
δεσμωτήριον (desmōtērion) G1201 — prison (4v) — place of custody, but specifically for confinement rather than military garrison
στρατόπεδον (stratopedon) G4760 — army, army camp (1v, Luke 21:20) — military camp/army; near-synonym but used only once in NT

Hebrew Source (via LXX)¶

Hebrew Source	Strong's	Co-occurrences	PMI	Notes
מַחֲנֶה (machaneh)	H4264	165	6.78	Primary equivalent — "encampment of travelers or troops, army, camp" (216v OT)
דֶּגֶל (degel)	H1714	10	6.57	Banner/standard — tribal camp divisions in Numbers
חוּץ (chuwts)	H2351	19	4.02	"Outside" — frequently co-occurs in "outside the camp" formula
נָסַע (nasa)	H5265	18	4.01	"Journey/pull up stakes" — breaking camp, marching
חָנָה (chanah)	H2583	14	3.68	"Encamp" — the verbal root of the camping action

The overwhelming LXX equivalent is H4264 machaneh. The LXX consistently renders machaneh as parembole throughout the Pentateuch and historical books (Exod 14:19–20, 29:14, 32:17; Lev 4:12; Num 5:3; Deut 23:14–15; Josh 6:11; Judg 7:8).

Key LXX Background¶

The phrase ἔξω τῆς παρεμβολῆς ("outside the camp") in Hebrews 13:11, 13 directly echoes the Pentateuchal formula מִחוּץ לַמַּחֲנֶה (Lev 4:12, 16:27, Num 19:3). In the OT, items burned "outside the camp" included sin-offering remains (Lev 4:12, 21), the Day of Atonement offerings (Lev 16:27), the red heifer (Num 19:3), and persons with skin diseases or discharges (Lev 13:46, Num 5:3). The Hebrews author applies this typology to Jesus' suffering "outside the gate" (Heb 13:12).